Two female bears were shot dead after escaping from their cages at a suspected bear bile farm in Yongin, south of Seoul.
Following a search by police, hunters and hunting dogs, one bear was killed on Saturday and the other on Sunday, according to the Straits Times.
A similar tragedy occurred earlier this year.
The organization Korea Animal Rights Advocates (KARA) reported that a female bear (“found to have a tube inserted into her neck”) was shot and killed in April after she escaped from the same farm.
Extracting bile from live bears is illegal in Korea, so bears are raised in captivity and then slaughtered for their bile when they reach ten years of age.
KARA says that the farm has been operating since 2003 and has 105 moon bears.
Although the Korean government has approved a proposal to end bear farming, a specific timeline has not been provided.
The IUCN classifies the moon bear (Ursus thibetanus) as Vulnerable, but notes that only “a small remnant population exists in South Korea”.
Photo © iStockphoto.com
Rhishja Cota
I am the founder of Annamiticus and I have been researching and writing about wildlife trafficking issues since 2009. I also founded World Pangolin Day in 2012. I am the author of USAID Wildlife Asia's Pangolin Species Identification Guide: A Rapid Assessment Tool for Field and Desk. I co-facilitated and was a presenter at the USAID Wildlife Asia Pangolin Care Workshop. At the 4th Regional Dialogue on Combating Trafficking of Wild Fauna and Flora, I facilitated the species roundtables on pangolins. I have trekked with forest rangers in Cambodia, journeyed to the streets of Hanoi to research the illegal wildlife trade, and to the rainforests of Sumatra and Java to document the world’s rarest rhinos. At CITES meetings, I collaborate with colleagues from around the world to lobby in favor of protecting endangered species. I hosted the Behind the Schemes podcast and am the author of the book Murder, Myths & Medicine. I enjoy music, desert gardening, herping, reading, creating, and walking with my dogs. Check out my t-shirts and stickers at snoots + teefers.